Intelligent Tech Channels Issue 47 | Page 32

AFRICA
REGIONAL CHANNELS
AFRICA

VERTIV PARTNERS WITH TECH CONSORTIUM TO LEAD LOW- CARBON FUEL CELL DEVELOPMENT FOR DATA CENTRES

Vertiv , a global provider of critical digital infrastructure and continuity solutions , has announced the Clean Hydrogen Partnership will provide 2.5 million euros to help fund a project to develop low-carbon fuel cells to power data centres . It is hoped this could reduce carbon emissions from operations by up to 100 %. The EcoEdge PrimePower ( E2P2 ) project is a novel proofof-concept ( PoC ) initiative aiming to develop and demonstrate low environmental impact fuel cells that provide economic and resilient prime power solutions for the data centre environment .

A consortium of seven companies – Equinix , InfraPrime , RISE , Snam , SolidPower , TEC4FUELS and Vertiv – will explore an innovative integration of solid-oxide fuel cells with uninterruptible power supply ( UPS ) technology and lithium-ion batteries to provide resilient and clean primary power to data centre deployments and other critical infrastructure . Implementing natural gas solid oxide fuel cells ( SOFC ) as a prime power application will be instrumental to pave the way for the use of green hydrogen for fuel cells application , for both backup and prime power systems .
“ Digitalisation and the data centre industry are growing at an increasing pace and thus it is even more vital to fast-track our journey towards an environmentally sustainable future ,” said Giordano Albertazzi , President , Vertiv Europe , Middle East and Africa . “ This can only be made possible by developing clean , innovative technologies such as fuel-cell solutions to provide sustainable power for the digital world . Vertiv is proud to actively contribute to the E2P2 proof-ofconcept initiative and looks forward to provide next-generation power solutions to its global customers .”
The E2P2 project is the latest in a series of initiatives Vertiv has conducted around sustainability and the wider environmental , social and governance ( ESG ) arena . Vertiv is also part of the Sustainable Digital Infrastructure Alliance ( SDIA ) and the European Data Centre Association ( EUDCA ) and contributes to the Climate Neutral Data Centre Pact with the aim to meet the European Commission ’ s goal for climate-neutral data centres by 2030 . The E2P2 project is part of the company ’ s effort to prioritise and support the development of clean , sustainable and renewable power solutions for application across the data centre industry .
The E2P2 project marks an exciting step toward significant carbon reduction , whilst still meeting requirements for a highly resilient critical power supply to data centres . At the heart of this vision , is a market-oriented approach that integrates innovation and stakeholder engagement to maximise acceptance and uptake opportunities of stationary fuel cells as reliable , efficient and decentralised prime power sources for other industrial scale applications .
The consortium hopes to develop the authoritative open standard for fuel cell applications to pave the way toward commercialisation of fuel cell energy for data centres in Europe , demonstrating the industry ’ s potential role in achieving EU carbon reduction targets . •
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